Maggie was born with a congenital defect of her heart called a patent ductus arteriosis (PDA). McLane and Schuckman performed an intravascular amplatz canine ductal occluder (ACDO) deployment procedure on the dog, effectively curing the otherwise terminal condition.

"PDA has traditionally been fixed with surgery, but this minimally invasive technique allows us to repair the condition without the patient having to have her chest opened surgically," Schuckman said. "As you can imagine, the recovery from this non-surgical procedure is much faster and far more comfortable."

"PDA is a condition where the patient has an open fetal vessel that should have been shut down shortly after birth, but which instead continues to allow blood flow," McLane said. "This makes the heart much less efficient and can lead to severe problems as the puppy grows older."

"We're excited to be able to offer this procedure at Care Center. We feel this offers puppies with PDA the easiest, fastest way to recover from this condition, Schuckman said. "PDA is one of the most common congenital defects in dogs, so having an alternative to surgery can benefit a great number of patients."

Intravascular ACDO deployment involves placing a catheter in the major artery in the dog's leg. Through this catheter, the cardiologist has access to the abnormally open vessel. Once in the abnormal vessel, the ACDO device is placed, and acts as a plug.

"We're effectively closing the vessel from the inside," Schuckman said.

The day after the procedure, Maggie was bouncing around Care Center's ICU, playing with her nurses as much as she was allowed.

"This procedure is one of a number of firsts for the Care Center in the 13 years we've been serving the Tristate," said Sarah Tiltman, public relations director for Care Center. "Our goal has always been to offer state-of-the-art specialty medicine for pets, but most importantly to provide it in a way that increases the quality of life for both the pet and their human family."